Saturday

I give this TV spot pretty high marks for both idea and execution. It will be interesting to see if the 30 second spot can be as effective.The 60 second media dollars can only last so long.

Now, lets look at the entire campaign. It gets a 5. Where is the holistic campaign view? No digital extension, no experiential extension... nothing. The idea is around discovery. Come on make that idea live. They had the money for a 60 second spot, why not find a way to bring that idea to life beyond TV.

For example I have shared 10 thoughts, that I came up with in 10 minutes.

1. Microsite. They are offering a 7-day trial on sirius.ca. Why not create a Pandora-like microsite where sirius recommends channels, based on a quick survey around discovery.

2. OOH. Transit shelters. Stream satellite radio to the select shelters. Allow users to shuffle sirius while they are waiting. Discover what is playing.

3. OOH 2. Transit shelters. Everyone has ear-buds with them. Allow them to plug in and discover what is playing if you don't want to have to pay for speakers in the shelter.

4. Subway, buses, streetcars. Do the idea from above on streetcars, subways or buses.

5. In Cabs. Allow passengers to control, discover, listen.

6. Partner with StumbleUpon to create a Stumble Music Video channel OR better yet a stumble music channel that stumbles upon a random sirius channel and gives them 1 hour of free listening per day (based on IP) for the campaign period.

7. The idea above but done on sirius.ca/discovermusic. Then allow the user to rate the channel, based on rating the site automatically changes the channel if it is below a 4/5.

8. Take good but unknown indie bands and have them rock out from rooftops like U2 did. One banner, a small street team driving people to sirius.ca/discovermusic.

9.Sirius Discover something new challenge. Have a users submit something that they want to Sirius Discover something spokesperson to discover. They then choose one a week and go do it. Video tape it. Post it. Users could submit anything from music related (discover the BigBop on a Friday night), to random challenges like discover chest waxing, discover volunteering at a soup kitchen, discover skydiving, discover 15 minutes in a shark tank, discover rolling in the snow then jumping in a hot tub. Users can also upload their own discoveries.

10. Have Canadians vote on what we think is the greatest Canadian discovery. Velcro, the ski-doo, insulin, Steamwhistle beer, Adjoke.blogspot.com, Jerome Iginla's wrist shot, the electron microscope, etc.

BBDO...now its your turn. I hope I discover a campaign extension that is integrated across a number of mediums. Make your great TV spot into a Great integrated campaign.

Can you imagine if every company had one, just one Gary V. working in it, fighting for change.

Now lets all go be the Gary V. in our company on Monday. Be vocal, give a shit, fight for what you believe in and if nothing changes. Leave, start your own company, give a shit and then show the company you left how they should have done it.

A friend and co-worker recommended that I check out Kevin Roberts (Global CEO of Saatchi & Saatchi) blog. I've been reading it now for a few weeks (and was ashamed that I didn't know about it sooner). It's a great perspective straight from the top of an agency network.

I don't think we see enough blogging from the top executives across our industry. Some don't want to (it's a bit too personal), others fear the potential of their own writing (who knows what junior PR reporter could pick up and spin) but most simply don't [think they] have the time to blog - there are bigger things to worry about. And in most cases, there are.

But blogging as a top executive makes a difference. A big one.

For starters, it shows clients (current and potential new ones) where you stand. It gives them a personal look at what you believe in outside of the 2 hour final pitch presentation. It proves that you are in the digital space and not afraid to share your opinion, engage others and answer questions from around the world about your company, brand beliefs and ideas.

It also helps your current staff understand what you're thinking about, what you are interested in, what gets you up in the morning and shows them how you want to lead your company. It's a place to share your feelings and show that you are in touch with everyone who works with you. It gives them a chance to comment, share and discuss their own ideas with you. And it's a lot easier (and more comfortable) than booking a meeting in your busy schedule.

Mr. Roberts, writer of the industry hit Lovemarks, writes about everything in his blog. From movies to trends, farewell's to ideas, it's his place to share what he wants. And it makes a difference.

This global CEO could have given a thousand reasons about why he shouldn't start a blog. He's 60, in charge of over 7,000 people across the globe, managing a team in a recession and travelling everywhere.

But he didn't.

He went to Blogger, started an account and got moving. He doesn't publish everyday and misses weeks here and there, but his posts are thoughtful, true and well written.

I don't know how many people in the world read it. I don't know what people at Saatchi think of it. But leaders don't talk about what people should do. They lead by example.

Here is the latest viral video from Droga5 and Co. It was created to promote Guitar Hero World tour and already has over 1.4 million YouTube views.

I'm pretty mixed on this one. It's a cool idea but gamers are an influential and savvy group and they don't like fake stuff. A quick look at the comment section on the YouTube page shows that people like the idea but others think it's pointless because it's fake.

I feel like with the press around Droga5, anything they put out these days is almost guarenteed to get +1M hits just from the creative PR alone.

Tuesday

Trolling through CR Blog today, I came across the new Adidas spot created by Sid Lee in Montreal. It's part of the Celebrate Originality campaign and features a ton of stars like David Beckham, Missy Elliot, Method Man and man others.

CR made a great point about how it's ironic that this house party contains people all wearing the same brand but that they are "celebrating originality." I tend to agree.

Still - the vibe of this spot is cool and I'd like to see where this campaign goes.

While on a train from Bruge to London, I heard an announcement that reminded me of what excellent customer service and communications sounds like.

Our train was scheduled to arrive at 10:19PM. About twenty minutes after we started the journey (it was only about a 2 hour trip), the conductor came on and said the following:

“Ladies and Gentleman. I regret to inform you that there will be a slight delay in our travel time. Due to the fire in the Chunnel in September, repairs have been ongoing and are the cause of this delay. We will be arriving in London at 10:29PM. Please see one of our staff with any questions and sorry again.”

We were going to be delayed by 10 minutes. 10 measly minutes.

The conductor pre-managed us, explained the cause of the problem (and brief history), committed to a new arrival time and apologized – twice.

Contrast this experience with one that I had only a few days earlier:

I’d booked a ticket from Toronto to London with Air Canada – a direct flight. Upon arrival to the airport, I learned that my flight was on time but was now going to make an unscheduled stop in Montreal to pick up more people. It had been undersold and Air Canada didn’t want to go all that way without a full plane.

When asked why my direct flight was now not so direct, the attendant replied that it was policy and I had to deal with it. So I did.

We stopped in Montreal and waited two and a half hours to fill the plane, check new bags, de-ice the wings and get in the air again. Upon arrival in London, I calculated that I’d been sitting on the plane 11 hours straight (original time should have been about 7).

How did Air Canada manage the situation?

They didn’t. They asked me to deal with it. Forgive them. Lied about what time we would be arriving and generally did what most other companies do – instead of giving you the bad news, they just don’t tell you anything.

My perceptions of these two brands? I love Eurostar and passionately hate Air Canada. I’ll do everything I can to ride Eurostar again. It’s reliable, fair, on time and the staff treat you with respect. Air Canada? I’ll spread the word about my bad experience (and many others), encourage everyone I know to look for an alternative and ignore any brand positioning or new ads. Essentially, I’ll be the worst thing a brand could ever ask for – an angry, loud former customer.

Two experiences. One great for a brand, the other, horrible.

Ads can’t save horrible experiences. And they can’t create great ones. Either your product or service works and gives someone a memorable experience, or it doesn’t. Every interaction counts.

PJC mentioned that sometimes he wishes he could tell clients to take their 3 million in media and invest it in customer service. I agree. We can come up with the greatest ad ideas, best brand positioning, tightest strategy and coolest technical innovations ever. But if the experience sucks, so does your brand.

Deal with Mobile Discovery allows digital links in offline ads to be created and tracked

US-- Publicis is to provide its advertising clients with tools to link offline advertising to online content, through a partnership with Mobile Discovery.

The mobile marketing technology firm’s platform allows advertisers to include ‘digital return paths’ such as SMS codes and scannable 2D barcodes in print advertisements or outdoor posters, so consumers can immediately seek more information or make a purchase via their mobile phone.

This is done through a web-based system where advertisers can create, track and analyse their integrated campaigns.

“We help advertisers generate online leads through offline media,” said David Miller, CEO of Mobile Discovery.

The deal has been struck through Publicis’ new division VivaKi, which works on investments and partnerships on behalf of the various Publicis assets.